I have a 2005 Boxster S. Very nice car.

Recently, I added some spacers to the wheels .... looks better, not sure it handles better, but that is not the issue here.

I find that when I back out of the garage in the morning and turn rather sharply (tho not locked up) that the car feels like a 4 x 4 in lock when turning on dry pavement. Odd sensation.

I don't remember this happening when I had the OEM non-spacer offset wheels. Altho, it could have been there and I was not aware. It is colder now in New England and I've only had the car a short time. Colder weather does stiffen some things up.

I think the new spacers are like 5mm front and 12mm rear ... altho, they could be a bit different. I can't remember. But, they were recommended by the German supplier for Porsche ....

Anyway ... anyone have similar jerkiness with their B-car with or without spacers?

Thanx for the comments.

 

My first suspicion is it's due to the cold weather and your tires -- It doesn't usually get cold enough here to need winter tires, so I drive on PS2s year round. On cold mornings, the tires are like rocks and will skip on hard turns. After a few hundred yards the sensation goes away. Try taking a sharp turn after driving the car a bit and see if you still have the sensation.

Just yesterday I added the 5mm spacers to my '05 Box. And I got shiny new bolts with the kit which is 1/2 the reason I did it -- I'll use the old bolts with my track wheels. I know 5mm is almost nothing but I can see a difference and I'm surprised at how even that tiny amount changes how the car feels. I'll try some sharp turns this morning and see if I can feel anything like you describe.

 

Thanx, Chris ...

I had not tho't about the cold PS2s. That could be it. And, altho my garage is not heated and runs 10 or so degrees above the outdoor temps ..... it was still pretty cold and the Boxster had not been run in several days. The tires could indeed be 'like rocks'.

The sensation is exactily like turning a 4wd truck on dry pavement ... hops/skips a bit.

I noticed the same/same sort of thing (to a lesser degree) when I backed my 997 C4S out of the garage this morning, too. Only 18* today !

I forgot which spacers I actually have .... wanted some wider ones, but Brombacker had better recommendations. I do like the way the car looks now. Somewhat wider stance. There may be a difference in handling, but I drive so many different cars, I forget what oem felt like.

 

I don't have any skips at low speed from my spacers, but I have noticed a wobble at high speeds. It doesn't seem to correlate to the road surface and I don't think I've thrown a weight or anything so I'll get it checked out when I have my state inspection done.

Let me know if when your tires warm up your problem goes away.

 

I haven't noticed anything odd at high speed .... of course, for me, 'high speed' is only 85 mph around here. Toooooo much traffic to roll much faster.

Yeah, I'll let you know about how the 'feeling' is when the tires warm up. Of course, we're in a cold blast presently and it may take some time to warm them up. I'll give it a try this weekend .... drive a while and then try low speed tight turns. That's when I get the stuttering.

 

Well .... I 'm still not sure.

I had to travel to PepBoys to get a fuse for my heated clothing on my Goldwing. I took the Boxster.

Yeah, it did the stutter step several times when I drove out of the "other garage" with a pretty steep back up angle. Same/same when I drove off. Stutter here and there as I made the turn.

I do think it could be the tires that are cold as can be. It was just 28* when I left for PepBoys.

I did not notice any problem when I got to the store 10 miles away .... nor when I returned.

I will keep an eye on this, tho. It is unusual.

 

room crank steering wheel all way to left or right then shut off engine. Not good to leave steering wheel at full lock wiht engine running. hard on pump.

Then get out and take a look from the front at the front tires and the contact or lack of it. The "inside" front tire will show nearly one half its tread width is off the pavement.

When you turn wheel sharply at low speed this lack of full contact and the fact the inner wheel describes a sharper turning radius (partly because it has less distance to cover and for other steering related reasons) the tire will skip and some shudder/vibration will come through the wheel.

Colder temperatures and older tires -- worn but hard from all the heat cycles -- make this symptom more likely to appear but I've encountered it even with new tires.

Of course, if there are any other symptoms at higher speeds, or tire wear is uneven or odd then an alignment check called for but from what you describe that's just the nature of the Porsche beast.

Sincerely,

Macster.

 

Hey, Mac ....

Thanx for the explanation. I think it may be part of the 'feeling' I have with the B-car.

I also have a 997 C4S as my daily driver ... and when I back it out of the garage on cold days I experience a similar experience, but quite a bit less. Could be the difference in tires ... age of tires or whatever. But, both cars seem to drive fine after a while. It's just when I start up with cold/cold sneakers.

BTW, the B-car has new rears, but original front tires with 25K on them. Prolly hard, now.

 

it wouldn't surprise me that the inside front wheel/tire is not in full contact with ground and if not this is the source of the behavior you experience.

C4S is a 4-wheel drive IIRC and the front wheels may not turn as sharp and therefore the symptom not as pronounced. Tire size (dia., width), age, inflation, difference in weight on front tires, etc, can all play a role too.

Sincerely,

Macster.

 

FWIW, my C2S does this also

 

So, I guess we have not found the answer ..... who knows, eh.

 

My Cayman with stock wheels and no spacers does it too. Just noticed it now that the weather is cold. Also running PS2s. The car is just not aligned to run in reverse.

 

 

Took the B car out for a 100 mile run this afternoon. When I got back to the hacienda and backed it up to go into the other garage, the stutter occurred again. And, again when I move the car forward ... and again when I turned the car into the garage.

Seems when you turn sharply .... not fully locked, tho ... this occurs.

It was 20* F. I'm sure the tires were cold and it certainly feels just like my four wheel drive Ford F150 with the "4 High" engaged and turning on dry pavement.

I'm sure it's not a problem, but odd. My 997 does it as well in the cold. Noticed it last week when backing out of a stall at work. Tho not as pronounced as the Boxster.